Singer Katy Perry fools internet with fake AI photos of Met Gala
PARIS – American pop star Katy Perry said even her own mother was fooled by artificial intelligence-generated fake images she posted of herself pretending to attend the Met Gala in New York.
“Couldn’t make it to the Met, I had to work,” the Firework singer wrote to her 207 million followers on Instagram on May 7.
But two photos in the post show Perry, 39, on the famous steps of the Metropolitan Museum, which hosted the glitziest fashion night of the year on May 6.
One had her wearing a huge floral dress, while a second had her in a warrior-style bronze bustier and grass petticoat.
She put her location as “Metaverse”, but many online fans failed to pick up on the fact that Perry was not actually present.
The image even fooled Perry’s mother. The singer, who is working on new music, shared an exchange in which her mum wrote: “Didn’t know you went to the Met.”
Perry responded: “LOL. Mum, the AI got you too. Beware.”
Other fakes also emerged of the evening, including images of Barbadian singer Rihanna and American actress Selena Gomez.
Although AI has often been used to create harmful and sexualised images of celebrities, some are now embracing the technology themselves.
British singer-songwriter FKA Twigs recently revealed she had built a deepfake version of herself.
“It is not only trained in my personality, but also can use my exact tone of voice to speak many languages,” she said in a statement on April 30.
“I will be engaging my ‘AI twigs’ later in 2024 to extend my reach and handle my online social media interactions, whilst I continue to focus on my art from the comfort and solace of my studio,” she added.
In January, a fake pornographic image of American superstar Taylor Swift was viewed 47 million times on X in half a day before being removed by the platform.
The following month, 20 internet giants including Meta (Instagram, Facebook) and X committed to deploying technologies to more effectively identify and report content generated by AI. – AFP
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